black long sleeve backless dress Incredible Fall 1998 Guy Laroche by Alber Elbaz Runway Black Jersey Re – Shrimpton Couture

black long sleeve backless dress Incredible Fall 1998 Guy Laroche by Alber Elbaz Runway Black Jersey Re – Shrimpton CoutureThe twin of the dress walked the runway for the Fall 1998 Guy Laroche collection It was made under the creative direction of Alber Elbaz. Alber was at Laroche from 1996 to 1998. The final collection that he designed was the Spring 1999 show and then he moved to YSL Rive Gauche directly after. This dress is an obvious take reissue on the famous 1972 Laroche designed by Guy and worn by Mireille Darc in the film 'The Tall Blond Man With One Black Shoe'.

• The twin of the dress walked the runway for the Fall 1998 Guy Laroche collection
• It was made under the creative direction of Alber Elbaz.
• Alber was at Laroche from 1996 to 1998. The final collection that he designed was the Spring 1999 show and then he moved to YSL Rive Gauche directly after.
• This dress is an obvious take / reissue on the famous 1972 Laroche designed by Guy and worn by Mireille Darc in the film 'The Tall Blond Man With One Black Shoe'.
• The dress is made out of a soft black jersey that is a mix of wool and silk. This makes it extremely comfortable to wear. It also gives it a slight touch of modernity from the original. 
• Like the original it has that deeply plunging and open back. The opening on this version goes right to the top of the neck instead of closing at the back of the neck like the original.
• The front neck is scooped and sits high up on the neck. The shoulders are soft and the sleeves are long. I love how he added a flared cuff to the ends of each sleeve instead of keeping them tight and fitted. It gives the dress a slightly more fluid feel.
• It skim over the bust and waist with simple darts, adding shape around the bust area. The jersey makes it very easy to fit because it has some stretch.
• From there it curves back out over the hip and falls to the floor. The bottom flares out quite a bit to pick up on the flare of the sleeves. There is an inset triangle of panel at the back to give it more flare.
• The back is fully open and the scoop is deep. This is intentional and meant to have that same shocking effect that the original dress had. Even knowing of the original dress, it still felt shocking when it was seen on the runway. I don't think it's quite as deep as the runway version but it's really dependent on your height and length of your torso. I have provided the measurement from the neck to the base of the scoop below.
• This is an incredibly rare dress and you may not see one again. I love the double dose of fashion history that this one has with the tie in with the original, as well as being an early piece of Alber's work, plus the documentation on the runway. A collectors dream.
• The dress is unlined and slips on to wear with no closures. The black jersey has some stretch and I have put the comfortable range of measurements below. Its easy fit and stretch should allow it to fit a range of sizes. It appears to have been worn very little, if at all.
• Tagged a vintage Laroche FR36
• Excellent condition

Sleeves: approximately 26" and they are 10-11" around the upper arm
Shoulders: no defined seam
Bust: 17-19" flat across from side seam to side seam
Waist: 12.5-15" flat across from side seam to side seam
Hips: 16-21" flat across from side seam to side seam
Total length: 60" from top of shoulder to hem in the back extends 4" past that.
Back scoop: approximately 21" from shoulder to the base of the scoop

Modern Sizing Equivalent: XS-MED

Item# DD5406

Reference Photos/Video: (1-4) Fall 1998 Guy Laroche. Model: Georgianna Robertson.  /  (5-6) Mireille Darc wearing Guy Laroche in 'The Tall Blond Man With One Black Shoe', 1972. 

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